Data presentation Methodological reflection on Case Study 2

for each case separately and each test result rejection or confirm- ation was evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

5.5.10 Implications for the theory

The hypothesis that successful product innovation projects possessed ideal typical organizational configurations was rejected. None of the six ideal types proved to be a necessary condition for initially expected project success in these 15 cases. Case Study 2 suggests, as one possible implication for the theory, that the proposition itself might not be correct. However, assuming that the exploration phase at the very beginning of the research project was conducted in a serious manner and that, thus, the proposition that was formulated and tested was based on sound practical and theoretical insights, such a conclusion would be a significant one that cannot be drawn lightly, and other possible reasons for the rejection of the hypothesis in all 15 cases should be evaluated. Below we elaborate on the evaluation as presented in 5.4.11. 1. Case Study 2 rejects the likelihood that the test results were the result of a too-strict test procedure. The reason for this rejec- tion was that “a large number of the successful projects deviate not marginally but rather substantially from the predicted pro- file”. However, if something was wrong with the measurement of the four organizational dimensions, this would have had a direct effect on the test. If it is assumed that the measurement of these dimensions was too unreliable for justifying the mid- dle value M and if, for that reason, the researchers would be forced to decide whether the value is H or L, it is possible that a number of tests would have resulted in a confirmation of the hypothesis. Repeating the same test on the same cases with dif- ferent measurement procedures might yield different results. 2. It might be that the ideal type itself not the test was too strict. Why should it be necessary for a success to occur that an organizational configuration is exactly as prescribed on all four dimensions, and for all types of product innovation? Could it be possible that having an ideal typical organizational configuration consisting of only three dimensions is a neces- sary condition for success for one type of product innovation, and an ideal type consisting of specific values of another set of